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The NH-L9a-AM4 is the latest, AM4-specific revision of Noctua’s award-winning NH-L9a low-profile CPU cooler for AMD Ryzen-based HTPCs and Small Form Factor (SFF) systems. At a height of only 37mm, the NH-L9a is ideal for extremely slim cases and, due to its small footprint, it provides 100% RAM and PCIe compatibility as well as easy access to near-socket connectors even on tightly packed mini-ITX motherboards. The custom-designed SecuFirm2™ mounting system for the AM4 socket makes installation child’s play and, thanks to the highly optimised NF-A9x14 92mm fan that supports fully automatic speed control via PWM, the NH-L9a-AM4 runs remarkably quietly. Topped off with Noctua’s renowned NT-H1 thermal compound, the NH-L9a-AM4 combines everything users have come to expect from Noctua’s larger coolers into a super-compact, premium-quality package for ITX and HTPC builds with Ryzen CPUs or APUs.

The NH-L9a-AM4 is a highly compact, quiet low-profile cooler designed for use in small form factor cases and HTPC environments. While it provides first-rate performance in its class, it is not suitable for overclocking and is only recommended for CPUs/APUs with up to 95W TDP (Thermal Design Power). Please consult our CPU compatibility list and TDP guidelines to find out whether the NH-L9a-AM4 is recommended for your CPU/APU.

New revision for Ryzen’s AM4 socket

Since the original NH-L9a for AM2(+), AM3(+), FM1 and FM2(+) has received more than 50 awards and recommendations from international hardware websites and magazines, the new AM4 revision builds on the same proven heatsink design to provide excellent low-profile cooling performance for Ryzen CPUs and APUs.

37mm low profile

Due to the slim 23mm heatsink and the NF-A9x14 low profile fan that measures only 14mm in thickness, the NH-L9 stands a mere 37mm tall, which makes it ideal for use in compact HTPCs or Small Form Factor cases that offer minimum clearance for CPU coolers.

100% RAM compatibility

The NH-L9a-AM4 has a compact footprint that fully complies with the socket keep-out zones specified by AMD. This means that neither the heatsink nor the fan overhang the RAM, so the cooler provides easy access to the slots and is fully compatible with tall memory modules.

100% compatibility with PCIe cards on mini-ITX

Some AMD-based mini-ITX motherboards have the PCIe slot located close to the CPU socket zone. While larger coolers that exceed this zone may block the PCIe slot, the compact-sized NH-L9a-AM4 provides full compatibility with PCIe cards.

Easy access to near-socket connectors

Many low-profile coolers use larger fans or heatsinks in order to achieve sufficient performance, but by protruding over the socket zone, they make it difficult or even impossible to reach near-socket connectors on tightly packed ITX motherboards. Thanks to its compact footprint, the NH-L9a-AM4 provides easy access to all connectors and components.

Low-Noise Adaptor

Allowing the maximum speed of the NF-A9x14 PWM fan to be reduced from 2500 to 1800rpm, the included Low-Noise Adaptor (LNA) makes it possible to achieve near-silent setups using CPUs with less than 65W TDP.

Custom-designed SecuFirm2™ mounting for AM4

The NH-L9a-AM4 comes with a custom-designed SecuFirm2™ mounting system for the AM4 socket of AMD’s Ryzen platform. Allowing the heatsink to be fixed from the back of the motherboard, it makes installation easier than ever, all while maintaining the trusted SecuFirm2™ quality.

NT-H1 thermal compound

Noctua's much-acclaimed NT-H1 is a pro-grade TIM solution that provides minimum thermal resistance, excellent ease of use and outstanding reliability. Chosen again and again by overclockers and enthusiast users worldwide, it has established itself as a benchmark for premium-quality thermal compounds.

6-year manufacturer’s warranty

Noctua products are renowned for their impeccable quality and outstanding longevity. Like all Noctua fans, the supplied NF-A9x14 features an MTTF rating of more than 150.000 hours and the entire NH-L9a package comes with a full 6-year manufacturer's warranty.

The NH-L9a-AM4 is a highly compact, quiet low-profile cooler designed for use in small form factor cases and HTPC environments. While it provides first-rate performance in its class, it is not suitable for overclocking and is only recommended for CPUs/APUs with up to 95W TDP (Thermal Design Power). Please consult our CPU compatibility list and TDP guidelines to find out whether the NH-L9a-AM4 is recommended for your CPU/APU.

I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised with the performance of both these coolers. Even though the NH-L9a-AM4 was unable to tame a 3.7 GHz overclock, I did not expect it to be able to hold it at all. The fact that it didn’t immediately throttle – it took over three minutes – was pretty epic. The NH-L12S did fare a lot better, and was able to keep the chip cool in both the stock and OC circumstances. Both coolers represent Noctua at their finest. I’ve never known a fan or cooler from Noctua to be underwhelming in terms of performance or their overall design. As we all know, their color scheme is one which you’ll either love or you’ll hate, but I do value them as a company for sticking to their roots and letting the performance speak for itself. Anyhow, both coolers are perfectly capable of styling up your rig whilst making minimal noise. Both the NH-L12S and NH-L9a-AM4 remained next to whisper quiet throughout the testing that I put them through, even under 100% load.

Noctua NH-L9a-AM4 is a cooler designed for all who want to build small PC and for that it’s perfect. There are not many competitive products on the market so it’s hard to compare it to anything else.
The NH-L9a-AM4 performs great considering its small size but at the same time is not making noise, even though fan has to spin faster than on the larger coolers. Noctua new fans are offering perfect balance between high performance and low noise. I’m not saying you won’t hear it when CPU will be under load but generated sound is not loud what you could expect from a cooler this size. Noctua NH-L9a-AM4 is covered by 6-year warranty. It’s the best warranty on the CPU cooler market. It also proves high quality of the product as Noctua is not afraid to offer so long warranty.

Test verdict: "If you are looking for a small cooler for your Ryzen box then Noctua NH-L9a is clearly one of the most interesting options. It’s hard to find any competitive cooler which offers as much in so small package." (Bartosz Waluk, FunkyKit.com)

The mounting brackets don’t touch the mainboard, is this an issue?

No. The mounting brackets are not meant to touch the mainboard and the flexibility of the brackets is required to create the appropriate contact pressure. There should be up to 3mm (Intel) or 4mm (AMD) space between the mainboard and the mounting brackets when the cooler is correctly installed.

Can I upgrade my existing Noctua cooler to socket TR4 or SP3?

Unfortunately, it is not possible to upgrade existing Noctua heatsinks to support the AMD TR4 and SP3 sockets for Ryzen Threadripper (X399) and Epyc CPUs. TR4/SP3 CPUs have much bigger heatspreaders (as compared to e.g. LGA2066 or AM4 processors) and the contact surfaces of standard Noctua heatsinks would cover only about half of these heatspreaders, which would result in insufficient cooling performance. On top of that, the heatpipes of bigger cooler models like the NH-D15 or NH-D15S would completely block the RAM slots on many TR4/SP3 motherboards. For this reason, Noctua has introduced the new NH-U14S TR4-SP3, NH-U12S TR4-SP3 and NH-U9 TR4-SP3 cooler models that feature bigger contact surfaces and have been tailored to fit TR4 and SP3 systems. Please choose these models for AMD Ryzen Threadripper and Epyc systems.

Can I install a Noctua cooler in my system from Acer, Dell, HP or Lenovo?

Systems from Acer, Apple, Dell, HP, Lenovo or other major brands often use motherboards which differ slightly from the specifications issued by Intel and AMD. While those changes are usually subtle, they can lead to compatibility issues with coolers that were built to comply with these specifications.

Even in case the cooler is mechanically compatible and can be installed, other issues can occur, e.g. proprietary fan connectors, BIOS errors due to a low fan speed, shutdowns, etc. Some of these problems can be avoided with some technical knowledge, but especially BIOS related issues can often not be resolved.

Due to the large number of possible issues that cannot be resolved with different mounting parts alone, Noctua does not officially support systems from Acer, Apple, Dell, HP, Lenovo or other major brands.

How can I determine if the motherboard’s UEFI BIOS is overclocking my processor by default and deactivate this automatic overclocking?

Most motherboard vendors allow their overclocking-enabled products (e.g. those with Intels X- or Z-series chipsets) to run the processor at increased clock speeds by default, without requiring any user action at all. Since TDP (Thermal Design Power) limits are usually also disabled by default, this leads to the CPU exceeding the rated TDP to a varying degree, depending on the used applications and their workloads. Due to the increased heat output of the CPU, you may see higher CPU temperatures than expected.

In order to find out if your motherboard is overclocking your processor by default, please enter the UEFI BIOS and select the “advanced” or “overclocking” menu. There you should be able to find options such as “MultiCore Enhancement” (options: enabled/disabled), “CPU Ratio Apply Mode” (options: all/per core) or similar. To disable the automatic overclocking, adjust the settings either to “disabled” or “per core” and make sure that the individual multipliers match the original specifications.

In doubt, please contact your motherboard vendor for detailed instructions on how to disable this feature.

How much torque should be applied when tightening the screws of a Noctua CPU cooler?

All screws should be tightened gently until they stop without using excessive force. Please do not exceed the following values for maximum tightening torque:

Screw type

Max. torque

NM-SSC1 screws for fixing the fastening brackets to the base of the heatsink

What Thermal Design Power (TDP) is this cooler recommended for and how much Watt (W) of heat can it dissipate?

How should I clean my Noctua cooler?

Dust: Fans and heatsinks inside computer cases tend to accumulate dust over longer periods of usage. In order to maintain maximum performance, please clean your fan and heatsink regularly. For cleaning, please first remove the fan from the heatsink and clean it using a duster, slightly moist tissue or canned air. Please be careful not to use too much force in order to prevent any damage to the fan. Please do not use a vacuum cleaner as this may apply excessive force to the fan and do not put the fan under running water as water residues inside the motor may lead to short circuits. Please also note that the fan is not designed to be taken apart by the user. Removing the impeller from the frame will break the sealing of the bearing and results in a loss of warranty. Before reinstalling the fan, clean the heatsink itself with a duster or vacuum cleaner. Do not use water
to clean the cooler. Finally put the fan back on and connect it to your motherboard fan header or fan controller.Thermal paste residues: Whenever you take off the heatsink from the CPU, we recommend to clean the CPU as well as the base of the cooler before re-applying thermal paste and re-installing the cooler. You can either just wipe the base and the CPU clean with a dry, lint-free tissue or, for more thorough cleaning, use a lint-free tissue moistened with either a mild solution of washing-up liquid or isopropyl alcohol. Do not put the cooler or CPU under running water. Note that both the base of the heatsink and the CPU should be dry, free from residues of thermal compound and free from grease before re-applying thermal paste and re-installing the cooler.

Which Noctua fan or CPU cooler should I buy? How to choose the right model?

Not sure which Noctua product to buy? Our detailed buying guides for fans and CPU coolers help you to choose the model that works best for you.

Do you have a question concerning one of our products? Please use this form to pose a question!

Disclaimer:We create and update our compatibility lists with the utmost care. Unfortunately, mainboard manufacturers tend to change certain components and heatsinks without pointing it out by using corresponding revision names. If you run into problems while installing our coolers on one of the mainboards listed as being compatible, please don't hesitate to contact our support team at support@noctua.at.

Please also keep in mind that other components such as narrow or small cases as well as memory modules with special (higher) heat-spreaders can cause compatibility-issues.